A Multilevel Model of the Social Distribution of High School Achievement

The study reported here identified some characteristics of secondary schools that encourage a high level of achievement and promote an equitable distribution of achievement across the diverse social class, racial/ethnic, and academic backgrounds of students. The data consisted of a subsample of 10,187 students in 160 high schools from High School and Beyond. Hierarchical linear modeling techniques were used to investigate the effect of the normative environment and academic organization of high schools on four social distribution parameters related to mathematics achievement. High average achievement is related to school social composition and to the school's academic emphasis. Although a smaller gap between the achievement of minority and white students is associated with an orderly school climate, less differentiation by social class and academic background are associated with smaller school size, less variability in course taking in mathematics, and a fair and effective disciplinary climate.